Tyjon Cousins didn’t know what to expect the day he met his newly assigned “Big Brother,” Norm Boyd, about a decade ago.
He was 9 years old and restless.
“I was running the streets with the wrong crowd,” Cousins, now 18, said of the boy he was before that first fateful meeting.
His mom – a single mother – saw where things were heading for her son. Hoping to give him a steady male role model, she signed him up for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cincinnati.
Then came Boyd – a retired engineer, white and nearly 50 years older. Cousins took one look and immediately had doubts.
“I thought, ‘pfft, this guy is not a good match,’” he said. “He isn’t even going to be able to keep up with me physically.”
Boyd, however, did more than keep up; he left Cousins and his friend in the dust on a steep bike ride. “We thought this guy was crazy, almost superhuman, hence the nickname ‘Not Norm,’” Cousins said. “That’s when I realized he was different.”
More than nine years later, that unexpected match has blossomed into a life-changing relationship, one that earned them the title of “2025 National Big Brother and Little Brother of the Year” from Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.
The pair received recognition this summer at the organization’s national conference in Philadelphia.
“Norm’s my guy,” Cousins said. “He changed the trajectory of my life.”
Finding the right match
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cincinnati is the local chapter of the national organization that serves 230 cities across the nation. Each year, the Greater Cincinnati branch supports nearly 1,000 children and families across 13 counties in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
Among those matches are Big Brother Terence Daniels and Little Brother Terrell Blue. Both from Greater Cincinnati, they were named the “National Big and Little of the Year” in 2017.
The nonprofit’s mission is simple but important: To help all children achieve their full potential through strong, long-lasting, one-to-one mentorship.
“Our goal is to start matches from a place of strength – considering preferences, location and interests of the Big, Little and their parent or guardian,” said Jessica Esterkamp, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cincinnati. “You won’t just be paired with the next child on a list. We build intentional matches designed to last.”
That was especially true for Boyd and Cousins. In their case, Cousin’s mother had one request: Someone over 25. “She thought having someone like Norm around would be good for me – and she was right,” Cousins said.
Boyd and Cousins lived near one another; Boyd’s family is in Evendale and Cousins spent his childhood in Lincoln Heights. They shared a love for being active and outdoors as well.
As a father of two, Boyd also had plenty of relevant experience, having also worked as a youth soccer coach for the Greater Sycamore Soccer Association.
Combined, these were all key factors that made the match a natural fit, even if their age gap raised some eyebrows due to atypical age difference. But for Boyd, age and even race never felt like barriers.
“I may be 50-plus years older than Tyjon, but I was always up for the challenge in all of our sports activities,” he said. “As far as race goes, I honestly didn’t even think about it. He was a 9-year-old kid, not a 9-year-old Black kid. Race was irrelevant to me.”
From ‘Hi’ to hiking in the Rockies
The first meeting between the new Big and Little was low-key but meaningful, Boyd recalled.
“It was just like, ‘Hey, hi,’” Boyd said with a chuckle. They went on to talk about Tyjon’s interests – cars, mostly – and made plans for our first outing.
“I think my enthusiasm rubbed off on him,” Boyd said.
Their adventures started small: Trips to museums and local sporting events, especially Bengals games and soccer matches. Tyjon played goalkeeper on the Princeton High School boys’ soccer team.
Over the years, though, those outings expanded to more adventurous endeavors: horseback riding, kayaking, sledding, go-kart racing, hiking and learning to drive.
Even before Cousins had his learner’s permit, Norm took him to empty parking lots to get a feel for the car. “We were zooming around traffic cones – forward and backward,” Boyd said. “It got him comfortable with the size and momentum of the car before he was even legal to drive.”
Once Cousins had his learner’s permit, they hit the road, often winding through the hills northeast of Cincinnati. And then came the spider.
“Just imagine a spider landing on your face while you’re driving down the road,” Boyd said with a laugh. “It ended well, thankfully, but it was the best driving lesson ever.”
As Cousins got older, the focus shifted to deeper conversations about issues like careers, relationships and identity. At that point, with Cousins being newly an adult, Boyd took their bond to the next level: an overnight backpacking trip in the Rocky Mountains.
“I practically dragged him up into the wilderness,” Boyd said. “Once we were 10,000 feet up in the mountains – surrounded by bears and mountain lions – I took him way off trail. We fought our way through thick forest. ‘I said, ‘Let’s keep going just a little further,’ and ‘Let’s just see what we can see from the other side of that ridge,’ and then, suddenly, we stumbled upon a beautiful, deep spring. It was so deep, so clear and so still, it seemed magical.”
The two covered 11 miles, gaining 3,300 feet in elevation. Along the way, they passed sweeping views of Mount Meeker, Longs Peak and Pagoda Mountain – a landscape that left a lasting impression.
“It changed my view on life,” Cousins said of the experience.
“The world is so big,” he continued. “To be away from everything – no phones, no electronics – it kind of changed my outlook. It made me appreciate the little things. It felt freeing.”
‘He’s family to me’
The relationship helped Cousins grow in ways he hadn’t expected.
“I know single mothers can raise a boy, but only to an extent,” he said. “It’s a male’s job to help a boy become a man, and that’s when Norm stepped in and did just that.”
From showing him how to stay calm in tough situations to treating women with respect – starting with his mother – Boyd became the mentor Cousins didn’t know he needed.
“He’s a role model, someone I look up to,” Cousins said. “I’m glad to call him my Grand Brother any day of the week.”
Boyd’s biggest surprise? How much he received in return.
“I thought I was going to be doing something good for a kid,” he said. “But there’s a ripple effect. Both of our families and friends’ lives were enriched by our relationship – and I’m guessing the good carried even beyond them.”
A ripple that keeps growing
According to Esterkamp, it’s common for many relationships between Bigs and Littles to last an average of four years. However, the organization has had many matches last much longer. BBBS now allows matches to continue beyond age 18, providing ongoing mentorship and stability during the transition to adulthood.
Esterkamp noted that Norm didn’t need to do anything extraordinary. He just showed up every Saturday, gently setting an example for Tyjon along the way.
“Norm and Tyjon’s relationship is a powerful reminder of what mentoring is all about – showing up, building trust and igniting potential for a young person to thrive,” she added. “They represent the very best of what Big Brothers Big Sisters stands for, and we couldn’t be prouder.”
And Boyd’s life has benefited in ways he couldn’t have anticipated.
“I did so many fun things I never would’ve done otherwise,” Norm said. “BBBS definitely enriched my life.”
Cousins is still figuring out what the next step in life is for him. He’d like to pursue a career in soccer in some capacity, or perhaps work with animals or children. But more than anything, he wants to live with purpose and pass that forward.
“I want to find who I am as a person,” Cousins said.
“I absolutely plan on becoming a Big at some point,” he added. “I have to take the wisdom I received from Norm and pass it down. I want to start a tradition. Norm was my Big, I’ll be a Big and I want my future Little to be a Big. That way it keeps going.”
You can find out how to become a Big Brother or Big Sister on the BBBS website.
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